Mazzulla provides more clarity on Porzingis’ illness, status for Game 3 originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
How much production can the Boston Celtics get from Kristaps Porzingis going forward?
That’s been a significant storyline during Boston’s second-round playoff series vs. the New York Knicks, and with good reason: Porzingis was excellent against his former team during the regular season but looked like a shell of himself in Games 1 and 2 due to an illness that limited him to fewer than 15 minutes in both contests.
The Celtics haven’t provided much detail on the nature of Porzingis’ illness — they termed it a “non-Covid illness” when he exited Game 1 in the second quarter — but head coach Joe Mazzulla shared a bit more insight Friday.
“We do know: He had the illness, and he has the effects of that illness when it’s his fatigue and his breathing, and he’s doing everything he can to give us what he has,” Mazzulla said during his interview with 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Zolak & Bertrand.
Porzingis missed 11 games in a 14-game span from late February to mid-March due to an upper respiratory illness, and it appears he’s still dealing with lingering effects of that illness, particularly in regard to his conditioning.
“It’s an illness, and what’s impacted is his fatigue and his breathing,” Mazzulla added. “So, he’s just working through those things.”
After going scoreless over 13 minutes in Game 1 prior to his departure, Porzingis looked a bit better in Game 2, playing 14 minutes and contributing eight points on 3 of 5 shooting. He’s still nowhere near full strength, though, and admitted as much to reporters after Wednesday’s Game 2.
“I’ve had ups and downs up until this point, and just now had a big crash,” Porzingis said. “My energy, my everything hasn’t been good.”
Still, Mazzulla is hoping that two full days off can help Porzingis rest up to contribute more minutes in Saturday’s Game 3.
“We hope that he’ll continue to get better and better with these two days off,” Mazzulla said. “We hope that he’ll be better, because we need him for us to be at our best.
“He’s in here every day; he’s doing what he can. I thought he gave us — those 13 or 14 minutes (in Game 2) were good, and hopefully we can build on that with a couple of days off.”
The Celtics need all they can get from Porzingis at the moment; they’ve gone 25 for 100 from 3-point range — an NBA record for the most missed 3s in a span of two playoff games — and are averaging almost 20 points below their regular-season scoring average as a team.
Porzingis is an offensive cheat code for Boston when healthy with his ability to hit 3-pointers and exploit mismatches in the post. Mazzulla sounds optimistic that Porzingis can increase his workload from Game 2 after two days off, but the big man’s health is still a major question mark entering Game 3.
Saturday’s game tips off at 3:30 p.m. ET, and NBC Sports Boston’s coverage begins at 2:30 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Live.
Mazzulla provides more clarity on Porzingis’ illness, status for Game 3
“What’s impacted is his fatigue and his breathing.”
How much production can the Boston Celtics get from Kristaps Porzingis going forward?
That’s been a significant storyline during Boston’s second-round playoff series vs. the New York Knicks, and with good reason: Porzingis was excellent against his former team during the regular season but looked like a shell of himself in Games 1 and 2 due to an illness that limited him to fewer than 15 minutes in both contests.
The Celtics haven’t provided much detail on the nature of Porzingis’ illness — they termed it a “non-Covid illness” when he exited Game 1 in the second quarter — but head coach Joe Mazzulla shared a bit more insight Friday.
SIGN UP HERE “We do know: He had the illness, and he has the effects of that illness when it’s his fatigue and his breathing, and he’s doing everything he can to give us what he has,” Mazzulla said during his interview with 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Zolak & Bertrand.
Porzingis missed 11 games in a 14-game span from late February to mid-March due to an upper respiratory illness, and it appears he’s still dealing with lingering effects of that illness, particularly in regard to his conditioning.
“It’s an illness, and what’s impacted is his fatigue and his breathing,” Mazzulla added. “So, he’s just working through those things.”
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After going scoreless over 13 minutes in Game 1 prior to his departure, Porzingis looked a bit better in Game 2, playing 14 minutes and contributing eight points on 3 of 5 shooting. He’s still nowhere near full strength, though, and admitted as much to reporters after Wednesday’s Game 2.
“I’ve had ups and downs up until this point, and just now had a big crash,” Porzingis said. “My energy, my everything hasn’t been good.”
Still, Mazzulla is hoping that two full days off can help Porzingis rest up to contribute more minutes in Saturday’s Game 3.
“We hope that he’ll continue to get better and better with these two days off,” Mazzulla said. “We hope that he’ll be better, because we need him for us to be at our best.
“He’s in here every day; he’s doing what he can. I thought he gave us — those 13 or 14 minutes (in Game 2) were good, and hopefully we can build on that with a couple of days off.”
The Celtics need all they can get from Porzingis at the moment; they’ve gone 25 for 100 from 3-point range — an NBA record for the most missed 3s in a span of two playoff games — and are averaging almost 20 points below their regular-season scoring average as a team.
Porzingis is an offensive cheat code for Boston when healthy with his ability to hit 3-pointers and exploit mismatches in the post. Mazzulla sounds optimistic that Porzingis can increase his workload from Game 2 after two days off, but the big man’s health is still a major question mark entering Game 3.
Saturday’s game tips off at 3:30 p.m. ET, and NBC Sports Boston’s coverage begins at 2:30 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Live.
